Holmes, Thomas bio

History of Fulton County, Illinois; together with Sketches of its Cities, Villages and Townships, Educational, Religious, Civil, Military, and Political History; Portraits of Prominent Persons and Biographies of Representative Citizens. Chas. C. Chapman & Co., Peoria, Illinois, 1879, page 919, Vermont Township
Thomas Holmes, farmer and stock-raiser, sec. 3; P. O., Ipava; was born in Washington (now Marion) Co., Ky., Nov. 7, 1813. His father, Nathan Holmes, was also a native of Kentucky, a farmer, who married Mary Miller, of Ky. In 1833 the family came to Farmers’ township. Dec. 1, 1836, Mr. Thos. Holmes married Rachel Derry, daughter of John Derry, of Va. In the fall of 1836 he built a cabin, and continued to labor industriously and economically until he is now a wealthy man. His present fine residence was buit {built} in 1865. He now owns 500 acres of valuable land. He has had 10 children, 8 living now; Mary, who married Samuel Miner and now lives in Kansas; Sarah, now the wife of Thomas Matthews in Nebraska; Josephine A., the wife of Harrison Edie; William, who married Miss Battles and after her decease, Miss Mary Stoops; Franklin, who married Sarah Hipsley; Charles, who resides in Vermont; Edward, still at the old homestead. Thomas E., a grand-son, also lives at the homestead.